Is searched across the entirety of God Valley, but found nothing.
Along the way, he encountered quite a few Celestial Dragons on the verge of death.
But he didn't save any of them.
After all, he didn't have the energy for that right now.
Besides, his relationship with them was average at best, so…
He didn't really feel it was necessary.
God Valley continued collapsing.
By the time Marine Admiral Sengoku, Fleet Admiral Kong, and Marine Vice Admiral Garp reached the coast—
The Roger Pirates had already set sail and left without the slightest hesitation.
The ones arriving at the shore were Marines.
That meant Rocks had already lost.
And if Rocks had lost, Is was definitely still on the island.
If they didn't leave now, when would they?
Kong wanted to pursue them, but by the time he boarded a ship, the Roger Pirates had already gone too far.
There was no way to catch up.
To Kong, destroying the Roger Pirates held greater value than rescuing Celestial Dragons.
After all, if the Roger Pirates were destroyed—
That would truly mean ending the pirate era.
But now, with the Roger Pirates refusing battle and already gone—
They had no choice but to abandon the pursuit.
They quickly returned to God Valley and began rescue operations for the Celestial Dragons.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Madara and the others had searched around as well before regrouping with Is.
"Did you find anything?" Is asked.
"Nothing at all."
Madara shook his head and answered honestly.
The others also shook their heads.
None of them had found any clues.
"Forget it. Let's leave first."
Is nodded, sounding slightly regretful.
If he couldn't find anything, there was no point forcing it.
After all, this world depended on fate.
If fate didn't want him to find something—
Then persistence was meaningless.
Is contacted the Marines protecting Rozemyne and told them to arrive near God Valley.
Then Is and the others quickly departed, boarded a ship at the shore, and left.
Less than an hour later—
God Valley completely sank beneath the sea.
Although the Marines rescued many Celestial Dragons, there were even more corpses.
The Marines searched underwater for a while before eventually withdrawing.
Night fell.
The divine moon hung high overhead.
…
Several hours later—
A massive and luxurious Marine warship slowly sailed into the waters above where God Valley once stood.
"Hm? Where's God Valley?"
The bald elder scanned the empty sea around him with confusion.
They knew God Valley's location.
And they even possessed an Eternal Pose.
There was no possibility they had come to the wrong place.
This was undoubtedly God Valley.
So where was the island?
"Looks like we arrived too late. The God Valley incident has already ended… and the island has sunk beneath the sea."
The elder carrying a sword sighed.
"Contact Kong and have him report the situation."
The Five Elders instructed the nearby World Government officials.
"Yes!"
The officials hurriedly took out a Den Den Mushi and called Kong.
Buru buru…
Buru buru…
Buru buru…
"Hello? Fleet Admiral Kong speaking. What is it?"
Kong's voice came from the other side.
"What happened to Rocks?"
The bald elder got straight to the point.
"Rocks is already dead."
Recognizing the caller as one of the Five Elders, Kong replied respectfully.
"Well done."
The bald elder nodded in approval.
"However… Rocks' death had nothing to do with the Marines."
Kong continued.
"Hm? Not the Marines?"
The elder frowned.
"Then who?"
"It was Aurelius D. Virel Is who killed Rocks."
Kong answered calmly.
"Is? That kid Is killed Rocks?"
The elder froze briefly before immediately asking again.
"Yes. It was Aurelius D. Virel Is who ended Rocks. By the time we arrived, Rocks had already sunk into the sea and died."
Kong replied truthfully.
"Hahaha…"
The bald elder burst into laughter.
"That kid Is really keeps giving us surprises. Even Rocks wasn't his opponent."
The other four elders smiled as well.
Aurelius D. Virel Is—
Just as expected of the Celestial Dragon they valued.
No matter when—
He always brought them surprises.
"However…"
Kong hesitated.
"Although Rocks was killed… the casualties among the Celestial Dragons this time were also rather severe."
"It doesn't matter if a few insignificant Celestial Dragons died."
The bald elder replied casually.
"As long as that boy Is is safe."
"Because only he… is the hope of the Celestial Dragons."
Kong was stunned hearing those words.
The implications were too deep.
He didn't dare respond.
The bald elder then hung up the Den Den Mushi.
"The God Valley incident may have helped us eliminate quite a few parasites among the Celestial Dragons."
The man with a scar on his left cheek spoke in a deep voice.
"We need to find a solution eventually. We can't continue allowing the Celestial Dragons to decay."
"Their corruption is already deeply rooted. Changing their way of thinking will be extremely difficult."
"As descendants of the twenty kings from eight hundred years ago…"
"Their current state would greatly disappoint their ancestors."
"Fortunately, this era gave rise to someone like Is."
"A man capable of carrying the banner of the Celestial Dragons."
"That boy Is has already brought us too many surprises."
"Let's return to the Holy Land, Mary Geoise."
"This time… we need to seek Lord Imu's guidance."
Their ship began heading back toward Mary Geoise.
…
The next day—
Is and the others had already returned to Mary Geoise and arrived back at their castle.
After the exhausting events at God Valley yesterday, even though he'd slept well through the night—
He still wanted to visit Mary Geoise's artificial hot springs, soak for a while, and then have lunch.
Carrying a change of clothes, he walked along the path leading to the artificial hot springs.
More than a dozen maids stood at the entrance, dressed lightly.
"Welcome back, Master!"
Seeing Is arrive, they greeted him in unison.
Is gave a slight nod before walking past them and entering the artificial hot spring.
Splash…
He stepped into the water.
Although this hot spring wasn't as large as the one at God Valley—
Returning to familiar surroundings brought him considerable relaxation.
Steam filled the artificial hot spring.
The atmosphere was exceptionally quiet.
He leaned against the stone wall with a content expression.
Tap tap tap…
He heard crisp footsteps behind him.
More than a dozen maids slowly walked in.
Aurelius D. Virel Is gently closed his eyes.
The maids gathered around him and softly began massaging him.
"Is this amount of pressure okay, Master?"
One maid asked gently.
It was her first time massaging Is, so she worried her strength might be wrong.
"It's fine."
Is nodded.
Splash…
One maid entered the water and approached him, her cheeks slightly flushed.
"Let me help you relax, Master."
Is didn't refuse.
He simply nodded.
The maid then began her work.
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